Cold hasn’t slowed sheepshead bite

GO FISHING is a look at the area fishing scene through the eyes of local charter boat captains and fishing guides. Today: Bill Miller.

Sheepshead is one fish not affected much by the cold and wet weather we had this week.

Captain Chris Wiggins caught a 12-pound sheepshead this week using a fiddler crab. Wiggins caught this monster, and many more, fishing seawalls and docks near downtown St. Petersburg.

Sheepshead has also been the catch for captain Billy Miller. The docks and rocks around John’s Pass have been Miller’s target spot. The best baits have been barnacles and a piece of shrimp fished on a quarter-ounce jig head near the pilings.

Don’t be surprised to find a good school of redfish while looking for sheepshead. Both Wiggins and Miller reported that happened to them, and Miller caught and released a 40-inch snook while on a sheepshead bite.

I fished with captain Ryan Farner and bass pro Jamey Caldwell this week in the Fort De Soto area. We found some redfish in shallow water, but they were very skittish. Caldwell did catch a 30-inch red using a swim bait commonly used in bass fishing tournaments.

The sailfish bite has been off the charts in Los Suenos, Costa Rica. Local anglers captain Bob Burnside and Billy Caldwell caught and released 88 sailfish in five days of fishing.

For more information, visit www.fishingwithbillmiller.com. To book a charter with captain Bill or his son captain Billy, call (813) 363-9927.